Practical strategies for the role of digital in your business

Facebook for beginners

I got a phone call from one my my clients last week asking me to help with the mess they created on facebook. Profile and Page were used interchangeably without them understanding the difference.

Get the Facebook basics right

As I was writing up my reply to them I realised that there are a lot of people out there who are probably having the same issue. So if you so, read on…

What is the difference between a Facebook Profile and a Page and how should you use them differently?

Facebook Options

There are three things you can set up on facebook;

Facebook Profile

Facebook Page

Facebook Group

They can be a little confusing to say the least. At first glance they may seem to all do the same thing, but in fact there are some very clear distinctions. To achieve even mild Facebook success, this is information that will get you started in the right way.

Facebook Profile (Home)

The Facebook Profile is your mandatory starting point. This personal account (think of it as your Facebook home) is required before you can move up to start pages and groups and is limited to “one per person”. The Facebook Profile is about you, the individual. Whilst you can build business relationships here, it’s intended to be more personal. By using the Friends List feature, you can send out status updates, photos and notes.

The Facebook Profile limits you to 5,000 friends (the average personal user has about 130 contacts). In contrast to the Facebook Page (see below) where you can have unlimited Fans (note not friends, but fans)

As profiles are personal in nature you gather “friends” in a profile and you can “add a friend”. Before you can get connected to another person, they have to first “accept” you as a friend too.

Facebook Page (Workplace)

Designed for self-promotion of your business, brand or work, your Facebook Page is a sort of mini-storefront. This is a good place to provide useful information, links to articles and blog posts, images and video — anything that creates perceived value to your fans. Analytics tools are provided and customization is available, allowing you to monitor your progress and bring your pages to life. With unlimited fans and multiple administrators possible, Facebook Pages is the best choice for a business.

As pages are business like in nature you do not gather friends as such but “likes”. People can “like” any page and do not need approval from the page, like you do when you request to be added as a friend.

Facebook Groups

A Facebook Group is a great tool to find like-minded people. We all like to do business with people we trust and feel most comfortable with. A group can be organized around your business or product, creating a community – but be sure to provide something of value to your members. This is not the place to market aggressively; instead it is a forum where customers can get advice or to learn to use the products you sell.

FB Groups can be;

Open (anyone);

Closed (group admin approves members);

Secret (Only members and those invited know about the group).

Hopefully that will help you if you have the same issue, not quite understanding what to do with Facebook. I am also placing some articles below about Google latest answer to Facebook, called Google +. At the time of writing it’s by invitation only, but it may well become another platform to watch out for (and be present on)